Phosphorus Removal
Meet your phosphorus limit at the lowest cost: read the three effluent numbers that show where the phosphorus is, set and check the alum or ferric dose, run a jar test, pace the feed, judge whether biological removal can work at your plant, and plan for a lower limit.
Who it is for
Activated sludge and lagoon operators at plants with phosphorus limits or facing lower ones, chemical feed and lab staff, operators preparing for higher level wastewater certification exams, and managers who oversee phosphorus removal.
Format
Online, self-paced: 11 timed modules with the manual reading, worked examples and a short check after each module, plus the student manual to download.
Length and price
3 hours, $105.
What you will learn
11 modules. Every example uses the fictional White River Resource Recovery Facility, a 10 MGD activated sludge plant that feeds alum for a 1.0 mg/L phosphorus limit, its September 2026 operating data and its study of biological phosphorus removal.
- Phosphorus, its forms and the White River plant (16 min)Why phosphorus is limited, its forms, the phosphorus sums, the White River effluent breakdown and a September plant balance.
- Sampling and testing (15 min)Total, ortho and dissolved phosphorus tests, filtering at once, sampling points, quality checks and reading TP with TSS.
- How chemical removal works (15 min)How aluminum and iron remove phosphate, why practical molar ratios exceed theory, dose points, mixing and not starving the biology.
- Alum and ferric dose math (18 min)Product strength, pounds and gallons per day, metal dose, molar ratio, dosing to a target ratio and alum against ferric.
- Jar testing (15 min)Making a stock, running six jars, reading the dose curve, diminishing returns and checking the jars against the plant.
- Dose pacing and feed control (15 min)Fixed, flow paced and trimmed feed, storm and peak capacity, pump calibration, day tanks and storage.
- Side effects, sludge and safety (15 min)Alkalinity and pH, extra sludge, effects on UV and digesters, chemical hazards, unloading and containment.
- Biological phosphorus removal (15 min)Phosphorus accumulating organisms, the anaerobic and aerobic steps, VFAs, competitors and phosphorus in the sludge.
- EBPR in practice, the White River study (17 min)Process layouts, the White River anaerobic zone study, detention, VFA supply and nitrate, secondary release and centrate.
- Meeting low limits (15 min)Why TSS controls TP at low limits, the dissolved floor, split dosing, filters and the White River path to 0.5 mg/L.
- Troubleshooting and the September storm (14 min)The three number method, chemical and biological troubleshooting tables and the September 2026 storm at White River.
What operators take away
- The forms of phosphorus, the tests for each, and how to follow phosphorus through a plant.
- How alum and ferric remove phosphate, where to add them and why practical doses exceed theory.
- Phosphorus math: pounds and gallons per day, metal dose, molar ratio, jar stock, pump checks, alkalinity, sludge, detention and VFA.
- How to run a jar test, pace a chemical feed and check that the pump delivers what the screen says.
- How biological phosphorus removal works, what it needs, and how to judge whether it can work at a plant.
- How to read TP, ortho-P and TSS together to troubleshoot, and what it takes to meet a 0.5 mg/L limit.
- Timed online modules with a short check after each one, a final quiz that opens when every check is passed and the study time is logged, and a certificate of completion from Wastewater Academy™ when you pass it.
- A student manual to download (it comes with the class).
Look inside
A few sample pages from the student manual. Tap a page to open it full size.
These are sample pages only. The full student manual comes with the class.
Register
3 hours, $105.
CEU approval status varies by state. Check with your state certification office before you count class hours toward a renewal.
Questions about this course? Contact help@ActivatedSludge.com.
Our courses have not been approved by any state agency unless a state approval number is shown. Whether a course counts toward your renewal is decided by your certifying authority. Please confirm with your state before enrolling. See where you can use these classes.
Registration is open. Register online and start right away.
After you pay, you are taken to a page where you start the online course and download the student manual. Work through the 11 modules in order; each ends with a 4-question check, and you need 3 of 4 to open the next module. The study timer counts time only while a module page is open and in the foreground, and you have been active in the last 5 minutes. It pauses when the tab is in the background or idle. Module checks open after about 30 percent of that module's required study time is logged. The final quiz opens after every check is passed and 2 hours 50 minutes of study are logged. It has 15 questions; you need 80 percent, with up to 3 attempts. After you pass and fill in a short course evaluation, you get a certificate of completion from Wastewater Academy™ in the name you enroll with. Online access, including the course, manual, quiz, and certificate, lasts 90 days from purchase. To see the style of questions first, try a free practice quiz.
Before you buy, read our refund policy, terms of use and privacy notice.
Certificate Only, $84: Same online course, manual and final quiz, with 90 days of access. The certificate reads “Certificate of Completion. Not submitted for continuing education credit.” and lists no contact hours, CEUs or license numbers. See terms.
Taking more than one class? This class is part of the All-Access Pass: every online class except Indiana exam prep, for 365 days, for $220. Training a crew? See group pricing.
See the All-Access Pass